Adventurer's Vault.pdf

ITEM LEVEL
The default assumption in the Player’s Handbook is
that each magic item has a level that equates to both
its cost and its suitability as part of a PC’s equipment.
However, an item’s level doesn’t restrict its use by
the PCs. A 1st-level fighter can freely use a +6 vorpal
greatsword if he can somehow manage to acquire one.
Alternatively, relative level can play a stronger
part in how magic items function in your campaign.
Although level doesn’t have a narrative equivalent in
the game world, it does suggest a certain degree of
inherent power within characters and their magic
items alike. As such, any imbalance between the level
of a character and the magic he or she wields can
have repercussions in the game.
Level-Based Penalties
DMs should feel free to place restrictions on the way
magic items function, according to their level. The
standard treasure rules (which assume that PCs can
find an item up to four levels higher than their own
level) are a good place to start.
It’s entirely reasonable to say that items five or
more levels higher than a character simply don’t
function in that character’s hands. Alternatively,
limitations or penalties for powerful items used by
lower-level characters can be assigned on an ad-hoc
basis. For example, a powerful magic weapon might
function at its normal level but impose a penalty to
the wielder’s defenses. Likewise, a defensive item
might penalize attack rolls, damage rolls, or both.
An item that grants a bonus on a certain skill check
might penalize other skill checks as its power overwhelms
its user.
More extreme penalties might function in the
same manner as the behavior of artifacts (see Chapter
9 of the Dungeon Master’s Guide). A character
wielding high-level magic might be inspired (or even
forced) to take up an item’s goals or purpose in the
short term. For example, a 2nd-level character might
feel the urge to give her excess wealth to charity
under the influence of a +3 symbol of hope, while a
10th-level paladin might be driven to seek revenge on
the elder red dragon that killed the former owner of
his +5 greatsword.
DMs should use this technique sparingly, however,
and only in the interest of advancing the campaign.
It can be fun for a character to try to deal with the
unexpected side effects of magic beyond his or her
ability to effectively use. It’s typically less fun for the
PCs’ magic items to limit their ability to choose their
own path.
Level Scaling
In the interest of entertaining game play, sometimes
a DM will want to place a magic item as treasure
that is too high for the party’s current level. Other
times, bravery and fortune sees the PCs defeat a foe
and gain access to magic that the DM never intended
them to have. In either case, an advanced magic item
can have its power scaled back to a level usable by
the PCs, with its additional power revealed over time.
This technique works particularly well for items that
have lower-level versions, but single-level items can
be reworked to lower levels as well.
For example, your world’s histories might speak of
the legendary Travic’s Blade—a 25th-level holy avenger.
If the DM decides to introduce the sword into the
campaign when the PCs are lower level, he or she
can do so by introducing a story hook that speaks of
the blade’s powers being suppressed until certain
conditions are met.
If first found when the PCs are 12th level, the
sword could function as a basic +3 sword—perhaps
one that deals radiant damage on critical hits as a
hint of its latent power. When its wielder is 15th level
or so, the sword can increase its enhancement bonus
to +4 and add a +2 item bonus to damage rolls done
with radiant powers through the weapon.
When the PCs ascend to a level suitable for the
appearance of a holy avenger (21st level or higher), the
blade finally attains the full power wielded by mighty
Travic in the annals of history. It might even scale
up again to become a 30th-level holy avenger when
its wielder reaches 26th or 27th level, allowing its
wielder to transcend the sword’s mythic past.
Item Levels as Treasure
Sometimes a magic item enters the campaign at the
correct level, but a player wants her character to hold
onto that item at higher levels rather than replacing
it with a newer, higher-level item. The DM can
allow the PC to invest monetary treasure in Enchant
Magic Item rituals to increase the item’s power (see
Enchanting Items, below). Alternatively, item level
increases can be given out as treasure.
Item levels granted as treasure follow the same
guidelines as normal magic item placement. An
increase in an item’s enhancement bonus should be
given out only when the PCs have attained an appropriate
level to earn magic items with the improved bonus.
MAGIC ITEM SCALING
Item Level Enhancement Bonus
1–5 +1
6–10 +2
11–15 +3
16–20 +4
21–25 +5
26–30 +6
APPENDIX 1 | Unique Items
APPENDIX 1
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